Nick Peers

Flexibits has released Fantastical 2 for iPhone, a major new update for its popular calendar app (which, despite its moniker, also works natively on the iPad). Fantastical 2, which is also available for Mac, is designed to work with existing calendar services -- including iCloud and Google -- but adds a more powerful front end for managing and viewing reminders.

Version 2.0 has been redesigned from the ground up to blend in with the new flatter look of iOS 7, but also ships with a number of major new features.

Continue reading →

Amazon has continued to roll out its Cloud Player application with the release of Amazon Cloud Player for Mac 2.0 (despite the version number, this is the first release on the Mac platform). The new player is practically identical to the Windows build, which debuted in May.

Amazon Cloud Player, also available for iOS and Android, allows Amazon users to access all music stored in its Cloud Player service.

Continue reading →

Mozilla has released Firefox 25.0 FINAL for Windows, Mac and Linux. The big splash in version 25 is official support for the Web Audio API, which allows developers to manipulate and play audio assets within a web page or app using HTML5 rather than a plug-in.

Mozilla has also confirmed that it plans to continue supporting Windows XP. This means XP users will continue to be supported by two major web browsers -- Chrome is the other --– after Microsoft pulls the plug on support next year.

Continue reading →

Does the world need another system cleaning tool, even if it’s on the Mac? IObit thinks so, and the result is MacBooster 1.0.1, the company’s first foray into the Apple market. This paid-for tool, available as a 14-day download, attempts to provide a one-stop shop for cleaning and optimizing your Mac.

Its subtitle is "For the Maximum Speed", and to that end bundles a selection tools to help clear out junk, improve security and free up system resources.

Continue reading →

Piriform has released its regular monthly update to CCleaner with the release of CCleaner 4.07. Also available in portable form, version 4.07 adds official support for the recently released Windows 8.1 update, plus supports the Release Preview of IE11 for Windows 7.

The new build also adds a new option that enables users to free up drive space by clearing out old folders left behind by previous versions of Windows.

Continue reading →

Lithuanian developer The Pixelmator Team has released Pixelmator 3.0 FX, a major update to its popular Mac image-editing tool. Version 3.0 adds non-destructive Layer Styles, allowing users to apply multiple effects at once, as well as Liquefy Tools that allow users to shape images in multiple ways.

Version 3.0 also adds full support for OS X Mavericks, promising to tap into OS X 10.9’s new features like App Nap and Compressed Memory for faster, more efficient performance.

Continue reading →

It’s been a relatively quiet couple of years for Nitro Pro, the chief alternative to Adobe’s Acrobat PDF editing and conversion tool. Last year’s update was a minor one, opting to refine existing tools alongside offering a handful of new features. With the release of version 9, the question is, has Nitro continued to prefer evolution to revolution?

The answer is a qualified yes. It’s worth remembering just how good Nitro 7 was on its release, and version 8 built on that. Helped by a competitive upgrade price, it was a worthy upgrade. Like its immediate predecessor, Nitro Pro 9 doesn’t pull up any trees, but there are some nifty new features to add to an already impressive feature set.

Continue reading →

BillP Studios has released a major new update to its system monitoring and security tool with the release of WinPatrol 29.0. Version 29 sees its alert screen completely revamped in an attempt to simplify the process of dealing with numerous system changes -- typically caused by malware -- as they occur.

Version 29 also tweaks font handling for improved display as well as moving alert messages to the top right of the screen to make them less intrusive.

Continue reading →

Comodo has launched a revamped version of its cloud-backup and sync service with the release of cCloud 3.0 and Comodo Backup 4.3. Part of the service’s unique offering is support for a generous 10GB free storage space, with the ability to potentially double that based on user referrals, with 200MB additional space being granted per successful signup.

The update is accompanied by a complete revamp of the cCloud website as well as support for free home and business user accounts with different feature sets.

Continue reading →

Oracle has released VirtualBox 4.3.0, a major update to its open-source virtualization tool for Windows, Mac and Linux. Version 4.3 introduces a virtual multi-touch user interface, adds new virtual devices including webcams, as well as a session-recording facility, plus offers improved networking functionality.

In addition, VirtualBox 4.3.0 also extends official support to the latest builds of Windows, OS X and Linux, including the forthcoming Windows 8.1 and Max OS X 10.9 Mavericks.

Continue reading →

OS X Mavericks is coming -- we’re still not exactly sure when, but probably October 22 -- and if you want to create a backup install USB stick for when things go wrong, you’ll want to take a look at Lion DiskMaker 3.0 beta 2.

Lion DiskMaker is designed to create bootable rescue disks from your OS X installation files (from 10.7 Lion onwards). Version 3.0 beta 2 adds support for the forthcoming OS X Mavericks release.

Continue reading →

It’s nearly here: dotPDN LLC has released the first alpha of Paint.NET 4.0, a major update and rewrite of its popular freeware image-editing tool for Windows. Featuring a rebuilt rendering engine, improvements to various tools and a tweaked user interface, the new release has finally reached the stage where daring members of the public can test it for the first time.

The new build does come with some restrictions -- as telegraphed at the beginning of its development, Paint.NET 4.0 will only run on Windows 7 or later.

Continue reading →

Kaspersky has released updated installer versions of Kaspersky Internet Security 2014 and Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2014. Both updates include the recently rolled out "Patch B", which adds support for Windows 8.1 and Firefox 23/24.

The update also fixes a number of bugs, but previously had to be installed separately after installing KIS 2014 or KAV 2014.

Continue reading →

Nero has rebranded and re-launched its free media management tool with the release of Nero MediaHome Free 15.0. Formerly known as Nero KwikMedia, MediaHome debuted last month as part of Nero 2014 media suite.

The application, available as a free cut-down version, is much quicker to load than previous versions, and bundles a built-in media server for streaming music, photos and videos to other DLNA-compatible devices.

Continue reading →

San Francisco-based Nitro Software has launched Nitro Pro 9.0, a major new update of its award-winning "Acrobat alternative" tool for creating, editing and converting PDFs in Windows.

The headline new feature in version 9, also available in 64-bit form, is integration with Nitro Cloud. It also shows off a refreshed look in keeping with the recent Microsoft Office 2013 release along with a number of new and enhanced features, including PDF compare and measurement tools.

Continue reading →